Wilson shines in rookie campaign

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This article was published 25/09/2024 (405 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Earning Zach Collaros’ trust on the field sounds as straightforward as a five-yard pitch and catch.

“Just know what you’re doing,” said the Winnipeg Blue Bombers’ quarterback and three-time Grey Cup champion. “I like the guys who know what they’re doing.”

Implied by Collaros are the necessary hours spent in the film room and countless repetitions on the field with his pass catchers. The goal, over enough time, is for the quarterback and receiver to see the game through the same lens, which can yield a special connection.

“Extremely important,” said Bombers’ offensive co-ordinator Buck Pierce. “I think that’s one of the biggest things is developing that trust, and that’s a lot of things: can you separate? Are you where I need you to be at certain times, and are you a guy that I can come to in a situation that I believe you’re going to make a play for us?

“Being a former quarterback, you throw to the guys that win.”

Fluency in the Bombers’ offensive scheme — and Collaros’ trust — is what receiver Ontaria Wilson quickly gained in his first year in the Canadian Football League.

The 6-foot 175-pound receiver has gone from an unknown commodity to one of Winnipeg’s biggest playmakers since arriving from Florida State University.

Through 14 games, Wilson leads the team with 844 receiving yards, is tied for the club lead with three touchdown receptions and is second in targets (86) and receptions (55). He also ranks seventh among all receivers in yards and is fifth in average yards per catch (15.3), among players with at least 25 receptions.

“Honestly, it’s just unexpected. I never really pictured myself being in this position right now and it’s just an amazing feeling,” said Wilson, who has placed himself in the running for the CFL Most Outstanding Rookie award.

“I just wanted to come out and prove myself. Plans (didn’t go) as I thought they would go with the NFL, I wanted to come to the CFL and kind of be that guy when I first came in.”

Despite Wilson winning a starting job out of camp, that looked to be well out of the realm of possibilities with veterans Kenny Lawler, Nic Demski, Drew Wolitarsky and Dalton Schoen all much higher on the pecking order to receive targets.

Things quickly changed as Lawler fractured his forearm in the season-opener and Schoen suffered a serious knee injury two weeks later — ending his season — while Wolitarsky missed time with a rib injury.

Suddenly, Wilson, targeted sparingly in the first five weeks, was one of two healthy starters remaining.

“It kind of forced me to be ready faster, rather than I can sit back and follow these guys. I came in a leading role in my third or fourth game, I’m a leader of the team kind of,” he said.

Wilson exploded for 13 receptions, 201 yards and a touchdown in Week 6 against Calgary, marking his coming-out party in the CFL. Since then, he’s posted another pair of 100-yard outings and had at least three catches and 40 receiving yards in six out of eight contests.

Indeed, while Lawler and Wolitarsky have returned from injury, Wilson hasn’t faded into the supporting role he started in. He’s become a co-star in the leading cast.

“Going into the first week when I figured out I was going to be included in the starting lineup as a receiver, I just wanted to be able to do my job and play my role, honestly. But when my role got bigger, I had more responsibilities and stuff,” said Wilson. “I just wanted to make the plays that came to me and (not) force it or press anything, but I’d say the biggest growth I’ve had is just being able to be a consistent player.”

Head coach Mike O’Shea seconded that notion and emphasized the 25-year-old’s smarts off the field have allowed him to thrive on it. While it’d be unfair to judge Wilson’s impressive rookie season to the otherworldly one produced by Schoen in 2022 — 70 receptions, 1,441 yards and 16 touchdowns — O’Shea said there are some similarities between the two pass catchers.

“Dalton’s season was extremely rare,” said O’Shea. “I think if you were going to look at similarities, it’s just their desire to take in the information and put it out there in practice and in games, right? He listens intently and is able to do things quite well— be in the right places and combine that with his athleticism, his hands, his toughness. It leads to him doing well for us.

“He’s really good. He’s really good, and he likes to block and he has good hands and he takes a lot of information in and is right way more often than wrong, which is really cool.”

Wilson played receiver and cornerback while attending Turner County High School in Ashburn, Ga., but was highly recruited to do the latter. After his redshirt year, Florida State only had three receivers on scholarship, so they asked Wilson to change positions, an offer he happily accepted.

“I ended up being a starter so I was like, ‘Yeah, I want to play!’” he said.

A less drastic change came in Week 4 when Wilson was moved from the slot to wideout. It’s another move he made without much resistance, knowing the position is targeted more than others.

It’s where Wilson has thrived ever since, and where he hopes to continue building his connection with Collaros when the Bombers host the Edmonton Elks at Princess Auto Stadium on Friday (7 p.m.).

“I think with just the reps, and the more and more he sees, the better it gets,” said Collaros. “The more reps in practice you throw, working individual routes, the easier it gets.

“I think it can get a lot better, obviously, there’s a lot of work to be done, but he’s a heck of a football player so if you put the football around him he usually makes a good play on it.”

joshua.frey-sam@freepress.mb.ca

X: @jfreysam